Silo discharge unit



March 16-, 1965 e. HANSEN SILO DISCHARGE UNIT Filed March 13, 1963 AVAWQ,

INVENTOR 6150262 flan/927V United States Patent 3,173,529 SILO DISCHARGE UNIT George Hansen, 304 South St., Audubon, Iowa Filed Mar. 13, 1963, Ser. No. 264,962 3 Claims. (Cl. 193-17) This invention relates to a silo discharge unit and particularly to a hopper which may be selectively mounted on a silo chute.

The cross-sectional dimensions of silo spouts vary from silo to silo. Thus the manufacturers of hoppers for mounting at the lower end of the silo spouts of necessity have to carry custom made hoppers especially designed to fit each of the silos on the market. Additionally, certain spout hoppers have functional limitations because they are adapted to be rigidly. mounted to the silo thereby fixing the angle of discharge from the hopper and the height of the hopper from the ground. These are some of the reasons hopper units for silos manufactured and used heretofore have been unsatisfactory in design and construction for both the manufacturer and the user.

It is one of the objects of this invention to provide a hopper unit which may be pivotally mounted on a silo spout.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a hopper unit capable of being mounted on hopper spouts of varying widths.

Another object of this invention is to provide a hopper unit having tapered side walls for selectively tunneling the discharged material therefrom.

A further object of this invention is to provide a hopper unit which is pivotally mounted to a silo or the like structure and may be pivotally moved to a storage position by operation of a suitable cable arrangement.

Another object of this invention is to provide a hopper unit having support members which may be mounted on either the inside or outside side walls to obtain the desired width between the support members.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a hopper unit having mounting members which may be rotated three hundred and sixty degrees to vary the width between the mounting members.

Another object of this invention is to provide mounting hardware for discharge units which is simple in design, economical to manufacture, versatile and durable in use, and refined in appearance.

Various other objects and advantages will appear from the following description of one embodiment of the invention, and the novel features will be particularly pointed out hereinafter in connection with the appended claims and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a side view of the silo discharge unit in a position of use;

FIG. 2 is a side view of the silo discharge unit moved to a storage position;

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the hopper unit;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the hopper unit taken along line 44 in FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a side View of the hopper unit;

FIG. 6 is an elevation view of an alternate mounting of a support member to the hopper unit; and

FIG. 7 is an elevation view of another alternate mounting of the support member to the hopper unit.

In the drawings the hopper unit is referred to generally by the numeral 10. In FIG. 1 the hopper 10 is positioned on a spout 12 for discharge of grain from a silo 14. In FIG. 2, hopper 10 has been pivoted upwardly to an out of the way storage position closely adjacent to the spout 12.

The hopper 16 is comprised of a flat bottom side wall 13 with tapered vertical side walls 16 and 18. The tapered 3,173,529 Patented Mar. 16, 1965 side walls 16 and 18 terminate at their upper edges in an upper edge portion 20 parallel to the bottom side wall 13. Edge portion 20 forms the base of an inverted channel 22 as seen in FIG. 4. An angle iron 24 is mounted on the upper edge 20 of the tapered side walls 16 and 18 at the narrow end of the hopper 10. An eye-bolt 26 is centrally and vertically mounted on the angle iron 24. An eye-bolt 28 is mounted through the eye of eye-bolt 26 and extends parallel to the angle bar 24. A pulley 30 is connected to the eye of the eye-bolt 28.

Vertically below the strengthening angle iron 24 and connected to the bottom side of the bottom side wall 13 is an angle iron strengthening member 32. At the opposite end of the hopper 10 from the angle iron 32 is an angle iron 34 secured along the wide end of the hopper to the bottom side of the bottom side wall 13. At the wide end of the hopper 10 and along opposite tapered side walls 16 and 18 are vertically extending angle irons connected to the inside of the channels 22 and the ends of angle irons 34 extending beyond the side walls 16 and 18.

The hopper unit is supported by pivotal support members generally referred to by numeral 37 connected to tapered side walls 16 and 18. Each of the pivotal support members includes a pair of telescoping pipe members 38 and 40. Pipe member 38 has a lower plate portion 42 offset from the longitudinal axis through the center of the pipe member. Plate portion 42 is in a plane common to one side of the pipe member. The plate portion 42 is connected to the side wall of the hopper 1G by bolts 44 and 46. Bolt 44 extends through the channel portion of the side and bolt 46, as illustrated in FIG. 6, extends through a bushing 48 mounted thereon. Bolt 46 may be selectively positioned in one of the holes 50 in the tapered side wall. Holes 50 are spaced an equal distance from the hole in the channel portion.

Second pipe member 48 is telescopically inserted into the first pipe member 38 and held by a set screw 56. The outer end of pipe member 40 is formed into a plate 58 similar to plate 42 on pipe member 38. A mounting plate 60 is connected to the plate portion 58 by a bolt carrying a bushing 62.

A tie down plate 64 (FIG. 3) is bolted to the upper edge 20 of tapered side 18 and extends outwardly therefrom. A key hole 66 is formed in the portion of the plate extending outside the hopper 10. The function of this plate will be subsequently described.

The hopper 10 through its pivotal support members 37 connected to the spout 12 may be angularly adjusted rel ative to the silo 14 by operation of cable or rope means 67. One end of the cable or rope means 67 is connected to tie down element 68 on the side of the spout 12 and extends through the pulley 30, thence through pulley 70 adjacent the tie down element 68 and thence through the key hole opening 66 in the plate 64carried by the hopper 10. A knot or other suitable plate engagement means may be formed in the cable or rope means 67 for engagement with the edges of the key hole 66. It is manifest that pulling in and letting out of the cable or rope means 67 provides the desired angular adjustment of the hopper 10 for discharge of grain or the like from a spout 12 as illustrated in FIG. 1. Angular adjustment of the hopper 10 relative to the spout 12 can additionally be accomplished by rotating the support members 37 on bolts 44 to the desired opening 56 in the tapered side walls 16 and 18 and securing the plate portion 42 thereto with the bolt means 46. The hopper 10 may be lowered relative to the lower end of the spout by extending the telescoping members 38 and 40.

The distance between the mounting plates 60 may be varied in several ways. Pivotal support members 37 may be mounted on the inside of the tapered walls as shown In FIG. 7, or on the outside of the tapered Walls as 3 shown in FIG. 6. Further variations in the width between the supporting members maybe otbained by rotating the supporting members a complete turn. The broken lines in FIG. 3 illustrate the pipe member 38 rotated and mounted on the inside of the tapered side wall 18 in contrast to the solid lines illustrating'member 38-reversed and on the outside of the side wall 18. By the appropriate selection-of a mounting arrangement from the numerous possible combinations, the hopper may fitted to virtually any width spout 12. a '7 It will be understood that various changes in the details,

materials, steps and arrangements of partswhich have been herein described and illustrated in order to explain the nature of the invention, may be made by'those skilled in the art within the principle and scope of the invention as expressed inthe appended claims.

I claim:

1. A silo disharge hopper unit comprising;

a bottom wall and two side walls on opposite sides thereof, a front end and a rear end, each of said side walls terminating at their upper ends in an outward- 1y extending inverted channel flange portion, said channel flange portionhaving a transverse opening formed therein intermediate the front and rear ends of said hopper, said side walls below said channel having a plurality of openings formed therein at an equal distance from said opening in said channel flange portion; a a support assembly on either side-of said'hopper unit, said assembly including a first body member being hollow at one end and having a plate portion at the 7 other end, said plate portion having openings formed therein spaced longitudinally thereof, a second body 7 member having a first end and having a plate portion at the other end, said hollow end of said firstrbody member and said first end of said second body mem-' her being telescopically joined;

means for selectively securing said first and second.

body members against relative longitudinal movement;

first connecting means extending through said opening in saidchannel and said inner opening, in said plate portion ofsaid first body member;

second connecting means-extending through said outer opening in said plate portion on saidtfirst' body mem ber and'adapted to selectively extend throughone of said plurality of openings in said side wall;

and third connecting means for pivotally connecting said plate portion of said second body member to a discharge unit. I

2. A silo discharge hopper unit comprising; a

a bottom wall and two side walls on opposite sides thereof, a front end and a rear. end, each of said side 'walls terminating at their upper ends in an outwardly extending inverted channel flange portion'Qsaid chan-, nel fiange portion, having a transverse opening formed therein intermediatethe front and rear ends of said hopper, said side Walls below said channel having a plurality of open ings formed therein at an equal distance from said opening in said channel flange portion; V i

V a support assembly on either side of said'hopper unit,

said assembly including a first body memberj. being a hollow at one end and having 'a plate'portion. at the other end, said plate portion being parallel and offset from the longitudinal axis of said body member, said 7 plate portion having openings formed therein spaced longitudinally thereofia second body member having a first end and having a plate portion at the other end, said plate portion of said second body member being parallel and offset from the longitudinal axis of said second body member, said hollow end of said first body member and said first end of said second I 1 boy member being telescopically joined; means for selectively securing said first and second body -membersagainst relative longitudinal movement; first connecting means extending through said opening in said channel and said inner opening in said plate portionrof said first body member; e second connecting means extending through said outer openingrin said plate portion on said first body member and adapted'to selectivelyextend through one of said plurality of openings in said side wall; and third connecting meansfor pivotally connecting said plate portion of said second body member to a discharge unit. l A silo discharge hopper unit comprising;

bottom wall and two side walls on opposite sides thereof, a front end and a rear end, each of side side walls terrninating'at theirup'per ends in an outwardly 1 extending inverted channel flange portion, said channel' flange portion having a transverse opening formed therein. intermediatethe front and rear'ends of said hopper, said side walls below said channel having a plurality of openings formed'therein at, an 7 equal distance from said opening in said channel flange portion; a V a a support assembly on either side of said hopper unit, said assembly including a first body member being hollow at one end and having a plate portion at the a body members against relative longitudinal movement; j

firstconnecting means extending through said opening in said channel and, said inner opening in said plate portion of said first body member; a 7 second connecting means extending through said outer opening in said plate portion on said first bodymern- References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STIXTESv PATENTS 591,364 1 0/97 Turner' 19319 6 10,690- 9/98 Ryder.

1 ,241,436 29/17 Peterson i. 193-5 1,513,034 -10/24 tLoursey 193--21 2,727,614 12/55 Bauer 1922 7 3,061,063 10/62 Rutten 19317 SAMUEL F. COLEMAN, Acting Primary Examiner.

ANDRES HINEILSEN, Examiner.

means for selectively securing said first and second 

1. A SILO DISCHARGE HOPPER UNIT COMPRISING; A BOTTOM WALL AND TWO SIDE WALLS ON OPPOSITE SIDES THEREOF, A FRONT END AND A REAR END, EACH OF SAID SIDE WALLS TERMINATING AT THE UPPER ENDS IN AN OUTWARDLY EXTENDING INVERTED CHANNEL FLANGE PORTION, SAID CHANNEL FLANGE PORTION HAVING TRANSVERSE OPENING FORMED THEREIN INTERMEDIATE THE FRONT AND REAR ENDS OF SAID HOPPER, SAID SIDE WALLS BELOW SAID CHANNEL HAVING A PLURALITY OF OPENINGS FORMED THEREIN AT AN EQUAL DISTANCE FROM SAID OPENING IN SAID CHANNEL FLANGE PORTION; A SUPPORT ASSEMBLY ON EITHER SIDE OF SAID HOPPER UNIT, SAID ASSEMBLY INCLUDING A FIRST BODY MEMBER BEING HOLLOW AT ONE END AND HAVING A PLATE PORTION AT THE OTHER END, SAID PLATE PORTION HAVING OPENINGS FORMED THEREIN SPACED LONGITUDINALLY THEREOF, A SECOND BODY MEMBER HAVING A FIRST END AND HAVING A PLATE PORTION AT THE OTHER END, SAID HOLLOW END SAID SECOND BODY MEMMEMBER AND SAID FIRST END OF SAID SECOND BODY MEMBER BEING TELESCOPICALLY JOINED; MEANS FOR SELECTIVELY SECURING SAID FIRST AND SECOND BODY MEMBERS AGAINST RELATIVE LONGITUDINAL MOVEMENT; FIRST CONNECTING MEANS EXTENDING THROUGH SAID OPENING IN SAID CHANNEL AND SAID INNER OPENING IN SAID PLATE PORTION OF SAID FIRST BODY MEMBER; SECOND CONNECTING MEANS EXTENDING THROUGH SAID OUTER OPENING IN SAID PLATE PORTION ON SAID FIRST BODY MEMBER AND ADAPTED TO SELECTIVELY EXTEND THROUGH ONE OF SAID PLURALITY OF OPENINGS IN SAID SIDE WALL; AND THIRD CONNECTING MEANS FOR PIVOTALLY CONNECTING SAID PLATE PORTION OF SAID SECOND BODY MEMBER TO A DISCHARGE UNIT. 